


Morning Glory

by pippen2112



Series: Back on Our Bullshit - A Critical Role Modern AU [3]
Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern with Magic, Campaign 2 (Critical Role), Established Relationship, Explicit Language, Fjord and Beau are workout bros, Fjord is a sap, Fjord pov, Living Together, M/M, i don't make the rules, i just write
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-16
Updated: 2019-01-16
Packaged: 2019-10-10 23:28:27
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,292
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17435525
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pippen2112/pseuds/pippen2112
Summary: The average morning in the Fjollygast household.





	Morning Glory

**Author's Note:**

> Here I am, back on my modern au bullshit. This series and it's continued existence wouldn't be here without the continued support from the lovely folks on the CritGoals Discord. 
> 
> No smut in this one, but I kept it rated M for consistency with the rest of the series.

Fjord wakes to warmth and darkness. He's tangled up with another body, one leg hiked over his hip, and an arm curled tight around his chest. Warm breath tickles his neck, and the scent of lavender and cloves hangs close over him. Molly. 

Even as he holds his partner a little tighter to him, Fjord frowns. True, Molly normally crawls into bed in the small hours of the morning and sleeps till noon, but usually he drags Caleb in with him. Either Caleb needed some personal space last night and took over Molly’s old room, or Caleb didn't make it to bed at all. _How these two are functional members of society, I’ll never know._

Before he can get too comfy, his bladder twinges. With a soft sigh, Fjord eases out of Molly's grip, pushing his pillow into Molly’s arms. He stands at the bedside for a moment, rubbing the sleep from his eyes and willing his mind to wake. In the darkness, Molly hugs Fjord's pillow to his chest, the sheets pushed down to his waist, baring his back to the cold. Shaking his head with a quiet chuckle, Fjord takes the blanket off the foot of his bed, drapes it over Molly's shoulders, and presses a light kiss to the crown of his head. Molly hums in his sleep, and Fjord's heart flutters. _Cute sleepy tiefling._

He relieves himself quickly and pulls on a pair of sweatpants and an old t-shirt. He's always been an early riser, something his partners seem to simultaneously envy and despise, but after so many years working changing shifts and constantly on alert for changing weather conditions, he's happy to let his body set the pace.

Creeping out of his bedroom, he ducks into the living room and finds an all too familiar sight: Caleb passed out on the floor, books and diagrams and spell components spread out around him, Frumkpin sleeping at his hip. 

Fjord tiptoes forward, holding his breath as he reaches to grab a throw pillow and a blanket off the couch, but as soon as he has them at hand, something tickles in his nose, and he sneezes. 

Frumpkin startles, hissing when his eyes land on Fjord, and Caleb jolts up, his breathing changing as his eyes open. 

"Sorry," Fjord says, shuffling forward. "I didn't wanna wake you."

" 's fine," Caleb mumbles. He rubs at his neck; probably got a crick from sleeping on the floor. _Again._

Fjord approaches, letting his footsteps land a little firmer, and presses his palm against Caleb's shoulder. When Caleb hums and leans into him, Fjord presses his fingers into the knotted muscle, doing his best to soothe away the ache. 

After a few moments of quiet kneading, Caleb asks, "Aren't you going to be late for your run with Beau?"

Probably, but it's not often that Caleb is as pliant as he is now. Leaning into Fjord's heat, making all these soft little noises he probably isn’t aware he’s making. Fjord rubs his thumb along Caleb's collarbone, relishing his slight shiver. "She can deal." He looks over the materials surrounding Caleb, recognizing several of the symbols and components as well as the tang of fizzled out magic in the air. "Is this that new ritual you were talking about?"

Caleb lets out a tired laugh. "Well, it's been around for seven centuries, but yes, it's new to me. And complicated. I'll need to get more incense before I try again."

Fjord feels his phone buzz in his pocket, but he ignores it as he squeezes Caleb's shoulder. "Why don't you go get some rest? There's still a couple hours till you have to be in lab, and there's a particularly snuggly tiefling keeping the bed warm."

"You know," Caleb says as he cranes around to nuzzle into Fjord's wrist, "that sounds like too tempting an offer to pass up."

As Fjord helps Caleb to his feet, Frumpkin winds between their legs, chirping. Caleb pauses to scratch under his chin. "Yes, yes, back to your pocket." He snaps, and Frumpkin vanishes.

Something twists in Fjord’s chest, a strange, noxious feeling he tries his best to swallow. He's proud of Caleb and everything Caleb can do with his magic. He's seen first-hand how hard Caleb pushes himself to learn and understand every scrap of arcane knowledge he gets his hands on. But even now, after spending so much time together and growing to really, deeply care, Fjord still feels the twinge of jealousy at Caleb’s seeming ease with magic.

Shaking away the feeling, he sets his hand at the small of Caleb's back and leads the way to his bedroom. Caleb shuffles forward, crawling into bed and burrowing in behind Molly. Still in his jeans like a savage. Shaking his head and grinning, Fjord pulls the sheets up around them and presses a kiss to the nape of Caleb's neck. "Sweet dreams, darlin'."

#

"You're late," Beau snaps in lieu of a hello, not even stilling as she does chin-ups on a tree branch. The branch groans under her weight, bending but holding firm. "You're never late."

He would be awed at her quick reps if he didn’t know moving is the only thing keeping her awake. "Sorry, sorry. A certain wizard needed some TLC this morning."

"Eww," Beau says, dropping back to the ground. "TMI, bro."

As he starts stretching, Fjord thinks back over his words, and his cheeks heat up. _Fuck, that is what Molly calls sex sometimes, isn’t it._ "Fuck, I didn't mean—"

"—That's an image I'll never be able to scrub out of my brain."

He's thankful the park is still dark at this early hour and that Beau can't see his blush. Otherwise, he doesn’t think he'd ever live this down.

Instead of responding, he starts down the jogging path. Something in his legs tweaks, and pain lights up his right side. He moves through pain, but all too soon, he hear quick, quiet footsteps behind him and Beau launches past him, cackling. "You’re buying me the biggest pumpkin spice latte for making me think that about Caleb’s pasty white ass."

Huffing, he chases after her.

#

By the time the sun crests over the horizon, Fjord is sweaty, flushed from exertion, and headed for home. He detours toward campus, a brisk ten minute walk, and stops in the local arcane supply shop. He's in and out in five minutes, a paper bag of incense tucked under his arm. It's not much--he doesn’t have much coin on him at the moment--but hopefully it will save Caleb the trip. 

When he gets home, Fjord unlocks the door carefully. He goes off his tennis shoes at the door, pads into the kitchen and starts the coffee maker, one of Molly's exotic blends set to brew. En route to his bathroom, he peeks in his bedroom door and stops short.

The sunrise is just starting to drift through the window, casting pale light across his bed and the men snuggled on it. While he's been out, Molly has shifted in his sleep. The blankets are shoved down around his knees, he's turned on his side so he and Caleb are pressed chest to chest. Caleb is curled low, his head tucked under Molly's chin. Molly's tail is wound around Caleb's thigh. And they're both sleeping peacefully, their brows smooth, Caleb's mouth tipped open.

Fjord takes a picture, his heart fluttering in his chest and his stomach turning warm and soupy. Molly has a surprisingly large social media following, says it's part of his grad school project, though how and why Fjord can't imagine. He shares a surprising amount of their lives, something they're all still learning to navigate. 

This, though, this Fjord's saving for himself.

**Author's Note:**

> Questions, comments, and concrit welcome!


End file.
